The legendary coach rolled into the city Alabama won the national championship game last January knowing many of the questions he’d field Wednesday would be about the quarterback competition — or quarterback controversy.

“The No. 1 thing that you will want to talk about is the quarterback controversy that you’d love to create, that you’ve already created, that you will continue to create, but I will tell you the same thing exists there,” Saban said. “It’s still to be determined as to who is going to play quarterback for Alabama. You can ask all the questions about it, but it’s still to be determined.”

Well, time to be creative.

Neither Jalen Hurts, who started the title game, or Tua Tagovailoa, who finished it in leading the epic comeback win, attended SEC media days, but were the talk of Day 3.

Saban saw it coming.

Warned he’d answer “we’ll see” to questions about the competition and said “don’t be mad” at him for doing so, but that didn’t stop the questions.

Alabama fans Jonah Pollard, left, 11 and his father Jason Pollard, both of Ranburne, Ala., await the arrival of head coach Nick Saban and players during SEC Football Media Days Wednesday, July 18, 2018, in Atlanta, Ga. Julie Bennett / Advertiser

The first one was about whether he thought Hurts will be on the team when Alabama opens Sept. 1 against Louisville in Orlando, Florida.

Here we go.

“I have no idea,” Saban said. “I expect him to be there.”

Saban later said Alabama will “create a role for one or both of those guys.”

Sounds like someone who wants to start one and have a package for the other. Not sure that’d go over well with either one, but if Saban can convince both to buy into that, insane props to him.

Alabama quarterbacks Jalen Hurts, left, and Tua Tagovailoa have their picture taken during the NCAA college football national championship parade, Saturday, Jan. 20, 2018, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Alabama won the national championship game against Georgia 26-23 in overtime.(Photo: Brynn Anderson, AP)

Then Saban said Hurts has a “great opportunity” to graduate in December. My first thought was if Hurts graduates and isn’t the starting quarterback, he’s leaving.

If things play out that way, and Hurts transferred to another SEC West school and played against Alabama in Tuscaloosa next season with Tagovailoa starting on the other sideline for the Tide?

Now that’d be the most watched college football game ever.

We probably won’t officially know the starter until the offense takes the field for the first time in 2018.

No worries.

Just builds the anticipation, but what else is there to discuss about this season?

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Alabama running back Damien Harris talks to the press during SEC Football Media Days Wednesday, July 18, 2018, in Atlanta, Ga.(Photo: Julie Bennett / Advertiser)

They’re going to be preseason No. 1.

They’ll have a strong front seven.

They’re reshuffling their offensive line.

They’re going to have an entirely new secondary.

They’ve experienced several coaching changes.

We know all of this.

We even knew Alabama would have the most fans at media days despite it being in Atlanta instead of Hoover where they’d pack the hotel lobby and “Rooooooooooooll Tide!” all day.

Diehard Tide fan Shannon Villa made the trip with ring hat and title belt.

The quarterback competition is the only real mystery with Alabama, but Saban made sure on the biggest summer stage Hurts and Tagovailoa know how much they mean to him and the Tide.

“I love both guys,” Saban said. “They’re both really good competitors. They are really good people. They are good leaders. They both make great contributions to our team. They are very well-liked. So somebody’s got to win the team and however these guys can help the team, I hope they are both committed to staying and doing that.”

So how will one win the team over when both have made it happen?

“You can sit there and say all you want about I’m going to be this type of leader or whatever, but I think that it’s about proving it on the field,” Tide senior center Ross Pierschbacher said. “That’s with any position really. Going into fall camp, we’ve got a lot of practices ahead of us, scrimmages and those two can separate themselves. By their play and whoever puts us in the most successful position to win.”

I can honestly see the QB talk being a distraction. Could even potentially split the locker room, but Saban won’t allow a divide. Besides, this is the fifth straight season Alabama has had a QB competition.

The Tide should be used to this.

As tiresome as it can be, it’s much easier to talk about a quarterback battle between two very good talents than to discuss losing 31 games in a row to Florida.

“I always look forward to annual question here,” Kentucky coach Mark Stoops said Monday with a slight grin and sweaty forehead. “I’m going to get it 1,000 times between now and the game.”

Hurts has the experience advantage. The dual-threat playmaker competes and has delivered in the pass game. Alabama fans wanting Hurts point to his 26-2 record as a starter, but he didn’t finish that last one.

Tagovailoa did — and won a national title for Alabama.

Hurts is more proven, but came up short in two national championship games.

Tagovailoa didn’t — and showed in just one half and one overtime series the ability to make throws Hurts hasn’t.